Monthly Archives: June 2017

Diagnosing Early Season Soybean Diseases In Ontario, soybean seedling diseases and root rots are the second most important yield limiting diseases (Figure 1.) and this year is no different. Cool soil temperatures along with early rains in parts of Essex and Niagara resulted in a large number of soybean fields needing to be replanted and the significant rainfall recently has…

Despite the wet weather, potato leafhoppers (PLH) are thriving in many areas of the province. Hopperburn is evident in the second crop of alfalfa, though dry bean fields are also at risk, especially once insecticide seed treatments are no longer present in the plants. Unfortunately, once hopperburn is noticed, yield and quality has already been compromised. Though PLH-resistant varieties of…

Nitrogen Rate Decisions for Corn Split nitrogen applications in corn not only minimize risk of loss, but can also provide an opportunity to adjust rates based on rainfall, which is a key factor in corn response to nitrogen from year to year. Use decision support tools to help with your rate decision and don’t underestimate the value of long-term management…

2017 Mt Forest Ag Breakfast Meeting Notes 2017-jun-13 General While still dealing with some impacts of wet and cooler conditions, almost all the crops are planted. Some areas may not get planted as persistent rains prevent that heavier ground from drying out. Consensus was that things looked way better than the previous meeting two weeks earlier. Beyond this region, there…

Weather Overnight rainfall ranged from 1 to 10 ml in the region. From the 1st of May, the area has accumulated about 825 Crop Heat Units (CHU), which is only about 25 CHU behind normal. Heat this last week has brought us closer to normal. Long range forecast is for cooler temperatures, so less CHU accumulation in the coming weeks….

It has been a few years since soybean aphids have been noticed in fields this early in the season. This is in part, because many fields were treated with insecticide seed treatments and were assumed to be protecting the crop early in the season. However, very recently published research across several US states has shown that the insecticide seed treatment…

Winter Wheat Winter wheat has headed, however some areas are behind in terms of growth stage. On the south shore of Lake Ontario where cool winds are more frequent, wheat is up to 2 weeks behind other areas of the region. A comment was made that while a lot of wheat is quite variable, tiled ground looks somewhat better. Essentially…

Authored by: Tracey Baute, Meghan Moran, OMAFRA and Dr. Rebecca Hallett, University of Guelph Swede midge populations are high this year while the canola crop is still quite young. Despite trap captures already reaching the accumulated trap threshold of 20 midges total, there are a few things to consider before deciding to spraying this early: Trap threshold – The recommendation…

Breakfast Sponsor: Thanks from the group to “Michigan Sugar – Wayne Martin” Quotes of the week – It was a stellar morning for great quotes. Here is a selection of some of the ones we can remember! “The coffee shop should only be drive-thru in the spring – Al McCallum “Good thing about mistakes is that they only last a…

Cereals A large majority of the winter wheat crop has progressed beyond the post-flowering stage, and spraying for Fusarium Head Blight protection has been completed in many regions. Stripe rust is reported to be advancing in some areas in fields that did not receive a fungicide application. Significant yield loss can occur in cases where disease pressure is very high….

Planting canola early is the best way to beat swede midge. Canola was planted late across much of the province this spring, so the risk for damage by swede midge is very high. This year swede midge are present long before bolting, and in some regions even before planting was complete. It is important to monitor canola fields using Jackson…

A recent news article (Ontario Watershed study shows over application of phosphorus) phosphorus is being over applied by Ontario farmers. The research quoted in the article gives no indication of soil fertility levels, and gives little information on soybeans in the rotation, all of which are essential to nutrient balancing. If growers apply 50 lbs of phosphorus (P) to both…

True armyworm have been found in a few fields this weekend. Cereals, corn (especially, though not exclusive those fields planted into rye) and mixed forages are at risk and should be scouted every three or four days over the next three weeks. True armyworm identification was covered in a previous blog this spring (here). Scouting Guidelines: The best time to…

Thanks to Robert Maloney, for chairing the meeting and to Jack Legg (SGS Labs) for sponsoring breakfast. The next meeting will be Tuesday, June 20th starting at 7:00am for breakfast and 7:30 for the meeting at the Malibu Restaurant. Synopsis: Corn in most of the area has emerged with few replants reported to date. About 90% of soybeans have been…

Cereals: Current weather conditions are ideal for fusarium head blight development in winter wheat. Many wheat fields in Southwestern Ontario have applied a T3 fungicide to reduce their risk particularly if they are growing a FHB susceptible variety. T3 fungicide applications further east will begin this week and continuing into next week for Eastern Ontario. A number of fields saw…

“Field Crop News” is an archive of information dedicated to the production of over 8.5 million acres of field crops in Ontario and a forum for which producers, researchers and industry personnel can share information and ideas. The crop technology team with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), faculty at the University of Guelph and Ontario field crop producers continually work together to find ways to improve field crop production. The key learning and outcomes from these collaborations are captured at “Field Crop News”.